The Hon. Alok Ahuja

Alok Ahuja was appointed as a Judge on the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District in 2008.  The Western District is an eleven-member general-jurisdiction intermediate appellate court based in Kansas City.  It covers 45 counties in western Missouri.  After his initial appointment, Judge Ahuja was retained by voters for twelve-year terms in November 2010 and again in November 2022.  He served a two-year term as the Court’s Chief Judge from 2014-2016.

Judge Ahuja began his legal career as a law clerk to Judge Richard D. Cudahy on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago.  He then engaged in a civil-litigation practice for three years with Shea & Gardner in Washington, D.C. (since merged with Goodwin), before returning to Kansas City.  In Kansas City, Judge Ahuja practiced with Lathrop & Gage (now Lathrop GPM) for fifteen years, until his appointment to the bench.  At Lathrop & Gage, Judge Ahuja initially concentrated in environmental and insurance coverage litigation.  He later developed an appellate practice in State and federal courts across the country, spanning the firm’s practice areas (including tort, commercial, intellectual property, employment, and education cases).